May, 2018 archive
Geeking Out 0
Earlier this week, I broke my Debian install. I was running Debian Sid (testing) and ran an update and lost my GUI environments. Sid is a testing version; if you run a testing version, you have to expect stuff to happen. Plus I had been having quirky stuff happen for quite some time, so I suspect the issue was mine and not Debian’s.
I was too lazy to troubleshoot the problem, so last night I reinstalled Debian Stretch. Since I had my home directory on a separate partition, all my personal files and settings were preserved, as I simply reinstalled the OS to the root partition. Consequently, once I reinstalled and started programs, they behaved as previously configured.
Here’s a screenshot of the new install running the Plasma desktop (Debian gives the option of installing one or more desktop environments; I chose Plasma and MATE):
All the News that Fits 0
In the context of a larger article about the comeuppance of Roseanne Barr, Gina Barreca muses cherries are in the eye of the cherry-picker:
By the Numbers, Reprise 0
It’s the racism.
This is the United States. In white America, there’s always an undercurrent of racism.
(snip)
The findings suggest that political efforts to cut welfare programs are driven less by conservative principles than by racial anxiety, the authors conclude. That also hurts white Americans who make up the largest share of Medicaid and food-stamp recipients. President Donald Trump and Congressional Republicans have proposed deep cuts to both programs.
Follow the link for more numbers.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Functional politeness:
Troopers say the victim shot himself while checking the function of a gun. No word yet on where the gunfire happened.
Well, I reckon it functioned as designed . . . .
The Bully’s Pulpit 0
David unpacks the fuss over Roseanne.
In a related piece, Melissa Burkley explains why referring to black people as apes is racist, in case you don’t get it already.
Flagging Interests 0
In The Sacramento Bee, self-described conservative Josh Edblow calls out right-wing “snowflakes” (his word) for their position on the American flag, the NFL’s new rule restricting player protests, and NFL players’ right to protest. Here’s a bit:
They express contempt for those on the political left – “snowflakes” – who use boycotts, shout-downs and other intimidation to squash dissent or differing viewpoints that might offend or insult some group. They criticize businesses that give in to “snowflakes,” and sometimes even pull advertising.
Yet at the same time, these conservatives defend the NFL because they agree with the reason behind this specific policy. This is philosophically inconsistent. Would they feel the same way if some other NFL policy required players to address transgender persons by their preferred alternative pronoun? Not likely.
The Art of the Con 0
Josh Marshall suggests that the fire hose of news and absurdity from Washington is not an accident; he goes on to suggest that it furthers the con and enables would-be autocrats to auto their crat behind the fog of breaking headlines. A nugget:
Follow the link for the complete article.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Politeness takes practice.
Sydney had just shot the rifle and walked down the hill to check her target. While Sydney was heading down the hill, the friend noticed she had left the rifle loaded with the hammer cocked back and he attempted to secure the device.
Arms Race 0
Reg Henry muses on American gun culture. A snippet:
(snip)
The core problem is that a sizable number of Americans have made a golden calf to worship. But that graven image is not golden; it is made of shining gun metal. As long as the almighty gun is put on a pedestal in our culture, praising the Lord and passing the ammunition in the general context of our world only perpetuates the suffering.
Do please read the rest.
Suffer the Children 0
That’s not scripture.
That’s Republican policy.
No Rest for the Weary 0
At the Hartford Courant, Emory University Professor Benjamin Reiss discusses the fascinating story of how sleeping in public became taboo and how that taboo results in differential treatement of the disadvantaged. A snippet:
